Live entertainment for patients in children's hospital
Sony has created a mini broadcast studio, so that children can watch live music, narrated stories, and more, from the comfort and privacy of their own room.
- Young patients at Alder Hey can experience loneliness, boredom and frustration in their hospital rooms
- Alder Hey wanted a ground-breaking entertainment solution to help their patients to cope more easily during their stay in hospital
- Live entertainment in the hospital atrium, captured with Sony SRG‑300SE and PMW-300K2 cameras can be streamed to any child’s room
- The AWS-750 Anycast Touch live is used for video switching, audio mixing and camera control – whilst video and audio is prepared with Catalyst software
- Lots of varied entertainment including pop music performances and narrated stories are streamed directly to young patients in their rooms
- The simple, intuitive production system can be operated by one person
- The high quality content is broadcast in Full HD resolution
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The fantastic new editing suite means we are able to provide entertainment to not only people in the atrium but direct to our patients and families who are not able to leave their wards.
Clare White
Chief Executive, Alder Hey Children’s Charity
Entertainment at leading children’s hospital
Alder Hey Children’s Hospital in the North West of England has created an imaginative solution to keep young patients entertained during their time away from home.
Made possible with the assistance of a generous donation from Alder Hey Children’s Charity, the innovative project centres on a mini broadcast studio, where live performances in the hospital’s atrium can be captured and produced with professional quality.
“Live music, stories and poetry readings are welcome distractions for children during their time in hospital,” says Jörg Fritz, Project Manager at Sony Professional Europe who worked closely with teams at Alder Hey and system integrator Video South to deliver the complete solution. “We wanted to create a solution that would be of particular benefit to children who can’t be moved from their bedrooms.”
Adding polish to every performance
A specially created stage in Alder Hey’s large, bright atrium is the focal point for regular shows by musicians, poets and other entertainers who regularly visit the hospital. Songs, stories and more are recorded using a PMW-300K2 XDCAM camcorder. An extra view is captured by a remotely controlled SRG-300SE PTZ camera that streams Full HD video, plus clear digital audio.
Audio and video sources are mixed using Anycast Touch, a compact all-in-one live production system that is easily operated via an intuitive touch panel. Footage is assembled using Sony’s Catalyst Edit software. Polished, professional results are then streamed across Alder Hey’s hospital TV network for viewing on screens in patients’ rooms and BRAVIA Professional Displays in public areas.
“For young people who aren’t able to leave their bedrooms when they wish, this potentially stressful time can be made just a little bit more bearable,” observes Jörg Fritz. “What’s more, the complete production system we’ve created for Alder Hey can be easily operated by a single person.”